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“I think Marco Rubio has approached this with very conservative principles,” Conant said Tuesday, urging critics to withhold judgment until a plan is released. “And anything he proposes is something that conservatives will be able to support.”

Rubio, along with McCain, Graham and Flake, will also have a major ally on the right: Big business groups that have been pushing for an immigration overhaul for years.

“My sense is there has been a sea change in the Republican Party, and people feel we need to do something,” said Tamar Jacoby of the business coalition ImmigrationWorks USA.

Once the bill is unveiled, the public sales job will move into full swing before consideration by the Senate Judiciary Committee as soon as this month. Rubio is expected to begin more aggressive outreach to conservative groups and radio talk show hosts, like he did earlier this year when he dropped by The Rush Limbaugh Show.

But there are a number of landmines that the measure’s proponents must navigate. Procedurally, Rubio must decide whether to join the Senate group and unite to defeat controversial amendments or to side with fellow conservatives who want to move the bill further to the right, even if it may upset the fragile bipartisan coalition.

And there are a host of lingering issues that those looking to kill the bill already are seizing upon. Under the plan, illegal immigrants would immediately be in the country lawfully under probationary status, provided they register with the government, pass background checks and pay fines. At the same time, new enforcement measures to combat visa overstays and toughen border security would take effect before illegal immigrants can obtain green cards or apply for citizenship.

Conservative critics are skeptical that border enforcement measures will be sufficient before illegal immigrants begin obtaining green cards. And, they argue, it doesn’t matter since illegal immigrants will essentially be given legal probationary status if the bill becomes law, something that Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies calls a “green card light.”

“Once there’s an actual bill and we see what’s in there, it’s going to be a mess,” Krikorian said.

The bill is expected to prohibit illegal immigrants from obtaining federal benefits until after they are out of probationary status and receive green cards. And there’s an ongoing debate within the group of senators over how quickly to allow some 200,000 low-skilled workers who get visas from being able to apply for and receive green cards and access federal benefits, sources say.

The issue is a touchy one. When Sessions proposed an amendment last month, saying illegal immigrants should be denied free health care even if they are legalized under a new immigration law, the four Democrats voted against it, while the four Republicans supported it.

Sessions believes the benefits issue will be a flash point in the fight to come.

“I think a great deal of work has gone into creating a positive image for reform this year, even with conservative leaders,” Sessions said, “but I think people are far more confident they understand the politics better than they actually do.”